LAS VEGAS – “A little disappointing, but definitely understandable” is how Kelvin Gastelum describes the news that his upcoming title shot will have to wait a little longer than expected.

Earlier this month, UFC officials announced that Gastelum (15-3 MMA, 10-3 UFC) will be the next to challenge middleweight champion Robert Whittaker (20-4 MMA, 11-2 UFC) after the two are done coaching the upcoming 28th season of “The Ultimate Fighter.” Speaking to reporters then, Gastelum said no exact dates were discussed for the title bout but that he’d heard rumblings of December.

That fell through this week when Whittaker announced he hasn’t started rehabbing the hand he broke in yet another five-round war with Yoel Romero and, “realistically,” won’t be able to return to the octagon until early 2019.

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That means the usually active Gastelum will have some waiting to do. But the fighter understands the situation and wants to meet a “nice and healthy” champ in his first UFC title shot.

“He’s got a hand injury to deal with, so I want to make sure he gets healthy,” Gastelum said during a “TUF 28” media day on Tuesday. “(I want to) make sure he gets all the necessary treatment for that hand.”

To which Gastelum added with a laugh.

“If I have to pay out of pocket, then I will,” Gastelum said.

On the bright side, it’s not like he is just going to be idle, with a full six weeks of “TUF” tapings ahead of him in Las Vegas.

After coaching the show’s second Latin American season, a few years after his stint as a “TUF 17” competitor (and winner), Gastelum knows that it’s “a lot of work.” And, even if the title shot is the ultimate goal behind it, it’s work that Gastelum is taking seriously.

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“I’m going to try to get it in here (at the UFC’s Performance Institute) as much as I can,” Gastelum said. “But, like I said, ‘The Ultimate Fighter’ job is a full-time job, and I’m doing it with every bit of energy that I can. So I’m pouring myself 110 percent for these guys. It’s going to be hard to get some training in for myself.”

It’s been an interesting turn of events for Gastelum. Right after Whittaker’s most recent bout, which ended up being a non-title fight due to Romero again missing weight, UFC president Dana White said Gastelum was actually supposed to have served as back-up that night but had “personal issues” to handle and couldn’t make it. Needless to say, White didn’t say that gleefully.

Yet, a little more than a month later, here Gastelum is – a “TUF” coach and a title challenger. And whatever was it that went on with the UFC brass, he said, is in the past.

“I think it was just more of a communication between my manager, his team and then my team,” Gastelum said. “It was just miscommunication, I think. We’ve got it all figured out. As you guys can tell, we’re on better terms now. He gave me the title shot, and I’m a coach now. We’re on good terms.”

Getting here also took beating some competition outside the octagon – namely, fellow middleweight contender Chris Weidman. The ex-champ, who’s been sidelined due to a hand injury, presented his case: Not only is he ranked above Gastelum in the official UFC rankings (he’s also No. 5 in the USA TODAY Sports/MMAjunkie MMA middleweight rankings – a spot ahead of Gastelum), but he also happens to have beaten his fellow contender the last time he fought.

Weidman isn’t wrong, but Gastelum had his case. After the loss to Weidman, which snapped a two-fight winning streak, he went on to meet an ex-champ in Michael Bisping and a longtime contender in Ronaldo Souza. While the loss to Weidman sits as his lone setback in six fights, Gastelum is Weidman’s only win in four fights.

Gastelum has made his case before, but he’ll make it again so there aren’t any doubts.

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“Dana always talks about people who fight and step up and fight should be rewarded, and I definitely felt I was that guy,” Gastelum said. “In the last 18 months, I had five fights, all three of them in the main event. Two top-five opponents. Actually, three top-five opponents. All of them top-10 opponents, most of them former champions.

“So I feel like I was definitely that guy Dana always talks about, stepping up and fighting. I was definitely fighting the guys people don’t want to fight.”

After former champions, Gastelum finally gets to fight an active one. And much like Whittaker, who sees merits in Gastelum’s game but believes he’s “better at everything,” Gastelum is both kind and confident in breaking down his opponent’s skillset.

“He’s good,” Gastelum said. “”He’s got a good heart. He showed in his last fight. He pulled through to get that win and obviously he’s got very good boxing. But I feel like I’m also a good boxer. My skills match up well with his. And people forget that I also have a wrestling background. I’m actually a wrestler that learned how to box.

“I haven’t really used it in my last few fights because I like standing up, but I’m a wrestler, I’m a brown belt in jiu-jitsu, and I have a lot of confidence I my ground game, as well. So I feel I match up well in all the aspects of MMA with Robert.”

And if he needs to go all the way to Australia in the final step of his golden pursuit?

“I will go wherever the title is,” Gastelum said. “It doesn’t matter where it is. I will be there. I will make the weight and I will win the fight, and I will take the title home.”

For more on the upcoming UFC schedule, check out the UFC Rumors section of the site.